


In Glass and the Unspoken Word

by RogueWolf



Category: RWBY
Genre: Agender Ozpin, Angst and Feels, Comfort/Angst, Hopeful Ending, Implied Relationships, Made Implicit at the End, Non-Verbal, Other, Touch-Starved, Touching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-26
Updated: 2016-06-26
Packaged: 2018-07-18 07:53:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7306231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RogueWolf/pseuds/RogueWolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>James hadn't really expected to see anyone else. It was, after all, 3am, a time when most people were asleep. But Ozpin wasn't most people.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Glass and the Unspoken Word

**Author's Note:**

> So my second Ozwood/Ironpin fic is very different from my first. Please read the tags and, as always, make sure to take care of yourselves. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

“Couldn’t sleep?”

James looked away from the window and smiled tiredly at Ozpin. “No,” he said, “too many dreams.”

Ozpin hummed noncommittally and stepped further into the room, their ever present coffee mug clutched tightly in one hand. James glanced at his watch and raised an eyebrow. It was past 3am, surely Ozpin hadn’t been up all night…James shrugged and looked back out the window. Ozpin was an adult and, as unhealthy as James thought their sleeping habits were, it wasn’t his place to criticize. After all, it wasn’t like James’ sleep schedule was that much better.

“I didn’t think I’d be bothering anyone here,” James admitted, watching Ozpin out of the corner of his eye as they slowly wandered around the room, studying everything and nothing. “Was I wrong?”

Ozpin shook their head and took a sip from their mug; their nostrils flared and James had the sudden sinking thought that Ozpin wasn’t drinking coffee.

Ozpin took another sip and then walked to the bookcases, running their fingers over the spines and casually pulling out book after book to flip through them. James watched Ozpin’s reflection from the window, trying not to frown. Ozpin hadn’t seemed inebriated. Their speech wasn’t slurred and they were walking steadily, without the stumble James had begun to recognize from Qrow, but there was something…off with Ozpin tonight.

“I talked to Glynda tonight,” James said slowly; Ozpin’s shoulders tensed, but they didn’t say anything. “She should be back in a few days.” James smiled, remembering the way Glynda had finally seemed relaxed, the way she had actually _joked_ and _laughed_. “She told me to tell you hi and that she tried to call but your scroll was off?”

Ozpin didn’t say anything, and when James turned to look, he saw Ozpin slouching in one of the chairs, their head low.

“Ozpin?” James asked gently.

Ozpin shook their head and James frowned; Ozpin used words the way most people used armour and weapons. If it wasn’t to protect themselves, to make them seem always in control of the world around them, it was to lead others astray, to make them follow the path that Ozpin wanted them to. And Ozpin-

James sucked in a deep breath when he realized what had been bothering him ever since Ozpin had walked in. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a conversation with Ozpin and they’d said less than ten words. Ozpin wasn’t like Qrow – who didn’t believe in dancing around the point – nor were they like Glynda. Ozpin was about elegance, about charming everyone who listened to them, about inspiring others to strive to greater heights. They were _never_ silent.

“Ozpin,” James said again, pushing himself out of his chair, “what’s wrong?”

Ozpin lifted their head slowly, almost painfully, and James felt their gaze hit him like a battering ram.

James was a soldier, a general, a hunter. He’d lost half of his body over the course of the last seven years and he’d watched the same – and worse – happen to his comrades. He was no stranger to grief and anger, but he’d never seen the amount of despair and loneliness brimming in Ozpin’s eyes.

James was across the room in a heartbeat, reaching around Ozpin’s body and tugging them close until James could slide into Ozpin’s chair to pull Ozpin onto his lap, holding them tight enough that James worried he was hurting them. Ozpin didn’t complain; they turned until they could hide their face against James’ chest and brought one of their hands up to rest underneath their chin.

There was a soft thud and James realized that Ozpin had let go of their mug to curl in closer. “I’ve got you,” he whispered, and shifted so he could scoot further back into the chair. He brought a hand up and pressed it against the back of Ozpin’s head, holding them steady. “I’ve got you,” he said again, and Ozpin shuddered. James held them tighter and Ozpin let out a watery laugh.

“Oz?” James asked, tilting his head so he could see the top of Ozpin’s head.

Ozpin pressed their header harder against James’ chest; James felt it as Ozpin took a deep breath and let it out slowly. But they didn’t say anything and James could feel tension flooding back through Ozpin’s body.

“I never told you about how I first met Qrow,” James told Ozpin. He stroked a hand over Ozpin’s hair and pretended not to hear the quiet whine Ozpin let out. “I didn’t know that it was Qrow at first; all Glynda had told me was that I was supposed to be meeting someone at a bar in downtown Vale.” James laughed softly and scratched at Ozpin’s scalp; Ozpin arched their back and pushed their head harder into James’ hand.

“It wasn’t what I was expecting,” James admitted with a grin. “I thought there’d be good food, maybe some music, and half decent drinks.” He shook his head. “There was no music, the food looked like it was weeks old, and the drinks, well…I wouldn’t be surprised if they were toxic enough to kill someone.”

Ozpin let out a soft puff of air and James moved his hand down to rub their back. “Qrow loved it.” He felt Ozpin shake their head in amusement. “He was sitting in a corner, reeking of alcohol.” It was James’ turn to let out an exasperated sigh. “I thought it was a joke at first – even though I knew Glynda would never do such a thing. But it was Qrow. He was tracking a pair of smugglers – mostly dust, though he’d heard rumors of Grimm being transported – and needed my help to look into it.”

James curled his free hand around Ozpin’s leg and stroked his thumb up and down. “I didn’t know until afterwards that he wasn’t pretending to be a drunkard. But then…” James trailed off and Ozpin shifted to spread their curled fist flat against James’ chest. James took a deep breath and went on. “By the time we finished the mission I knew about his family, about his team, and I couldn’t really blame him for trying to bury it in a bottle.”

“Qrow has lost a lot,” Ozpin rasped, and tapped gentle fingers against the metal that made up half of James’ chest. “And so have you.” They stilled and let their hand drop away to fall limply into their lap. “And it’s because of me.”

“Oz, _no_.” James reached out and tangled his fingers with Ozpin’s. “Nothing that has happened to us has been your fault.”

“You don’t know that,” Ozpin said numbly. “I’ve done things that you don’t know about, things that would make you hate me.”

“But I don’t hate you know,” James said firmly, “and I don’t think I ever will.” He let go of Ozpin’s fingers and tucked his hand under Ozpin’s chin, raising it up so that Ozpin had to look at him. “None of hate you. Glynda, Qrow, myself…We know you’re not perfect, Oz, and we have never once thought otherwise.”

Ozpin sagged into James’ hold. “But I-”

“It doesn’t matter,” James told him. “Do you think that we’re blameless? That we haven’t done things that make us question ourselves?” James shook his head. “We do the things others can’t, Oz. We make the hard decisions, and sometimes those hard decisions are monstrous to others. But we do it because we know we must, if we want to protect those around us.”

“You don’t understand,” Ozpin began, but James laid a gentle hand over their mouth.

“I understand,” he told Ozpin softly. “I understand that you care too much sometimes. That you give and give of yourself until you’re all but bleeding out and yet you still try to give more.” Ozpin stared up at James with wide eyes and began to shake. “I understand that all you want to do is protect the people around you, even if doing so costs you more than you can bear. But you will do it, because you don’t want anyone else to have to pay that price.”

James smiled and ran his hand across Ozpin’s face to cup their cheek tenderly. “I don’t know what we did to ever deserve you.”

Ozpin tilted their head into James’ hand and closed their eyes. “You were kind,” they finally said, and James felt his heart break.

“I don’t understand,” he said, and Ozpin’s brow furrowed.

“You were kind,” they repeated, “you all were. And you don’t realize how much of a rarity that is, these days. Or back then,” they continued. “You don’t see how special you all are, and how much you all need each other.” They fell silent and let their head drop back against James’ chest.

James kept his hand on Ozpin’s cheek, slowly stroking their skin, and turned their words over in his mind. It wasn’t a lie to say that he had grown fairly dependent on Qrow or Glynda, and they on him. They talked daily - when they could - and were always there to comfort each other when needed. They helped each other without even thinking about it at this point, but Ozpin…Ozpin knew them all separately, knew them all longer than they knew each other. If they helped each other, then it only stood to reason that-

“You need us,” James said slowly. He looked down at Ozpin who was frozen in his arms. “How did we not see this before.” He jolted suddenly, as he remembered something. “Glynda hasn’t been here, this past week,” he said breathlessly. “Qrow’s on a mission and I’ve been in Atlas and _you,”_ He stared at Ozpin and felt horror and shame creeping up his spine. “We left you alone and didn’t even think twice.”

Ozpin smiled at James, but their eyes were heavy with resignation. “It hasn’t been the first time, nor will it be the last,” they told James. “It’s the price I pay, for picking you.”

“No,” James said firmly. “No, Ozpin, no.” He kept stroking his fingers across Ozpin’s cheek, afraid that if he’d stop, his hands would start trembling. “You have us, you have me. You shouldn’t be alone.” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to control the torrent of emotions welling up inside him. “This isn’t a price you should be paying,” he said. His voice cracked and he took another, shuddering breath and opened his eyes to stare pleadingly at Ozpin. “It shouldn’t cost you to be with us.” His fingers tightened against Ozpin’s cheek; Ozpin blinked but otherwise didn’t move. “To be with _me_.”

“James,” Ozpin said gently, “sometimes you don’t get a choice. There is always a price to be paid; it’s just that it’s not always obvious what it is. And sometimes the price seems too much but,” Ozpin brought their hand up to rest atop of James’ where it cupped Ozpin’s cheek, “oftentimes that’s when it’s most worth it.”

“I don’t believe that,” James said stubbornly, and Ozpin smiled again.

“You’re still young,” they told him. They reached up and traced the edge of the metal peeking out from underneath the collar of James’ shirt. “One day you’ll find someone who brings you such joy that you will do _anything_ to keep them safe. When that happens, you’ll understand.”

“Don’t you get it,” James said, and bent forward until his forehead rested against Ozpin’s. “I already have you.” He felt Ozpin’s breathing stutter in surprise. “So I mean it when I say this isn’t a price you should be paying.” He clenched his eyes shut. “We should have been here for you… _I_ should have been here for you.”

“You’re here now,” Ozpin said quietly, “and that’s what matters.” They curled their free hand around James’ neck, a warmth that did nothing to dispel the shame that left a bitter taste in James’ mouth.

James let his head fall to rest on Ozpin’s shoulder and clutched them tighter, unwilling to let them go. It didn’t matter what Ozpin said; James should have been there for them before this, should have realized what they – Qrow, Glynda, James – meant to Ozpin.

He was here now, though, and he was never letting go.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are love!
> 
>  
> 
> [You can find me on tumblr here](http://roguewolfprints.tumblr.com)


End file.
